This invention relates to compositions adapted to the provision of fabric softening and anti-static effects in fabric laundering operations. More particularly, it relates to the provision of these effects while simultaneously cleansing fabrics in the presence of conventional synthetic detergent compounds and organic or inorganic detergent builders.
Various clay materials have been utilized in many different types of detergent systems for widely diverse purposes. Clays, for example, have been disclosed for utilization as builders (Schwartz and Perry, Surface Active Agents, Interscience Publishers, Inc., 1949, pp. 232 and 299); as water-softeners (British Pat. No. 461,221); as anti-caking agents (U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,625,513 and 2,770,600); as suspending agents (U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,594,257, 2,594,258 and 2,920,045); and as fillers (U.S. Pat. No. 2,708,185).
It is also well known that some clay materials can be deposited on fabrics to impart softening properties thereto. Such clay deposition is usually realized by contacting fabrics to be so treated with aqueous clay suspensions (see, for example U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,033,699 and 3,594,221). The copending applications of Storm and Mirschl, Ser. No. 271,943, filed July 14, 1972, now abandoned; Ohren, Ser. No. 279,127, filed Aug. 9, 1972 now U.S. Pat. No. 3,852,211, Nirschl and Gloss, Ser. No. 305,416, filed Nov. 10, 1972, now U.S. Pat. No. 3,862,058; and Gloss and Nirschl, Ser. No. 305,417, filed Nov. 10, 1972; relate to the use of clays as softeners in laundry compositions.
While clays can provide softening properties, and in the presence of detergent and builder substances used in the cleansing or laundering of fabrics, they do not provide anti-static properties. Commercially acceptable fabric softeners additionally provide anti-static benefits, and such benefits have come to be expected by the user of such products. Indeed, fabrics coated with clays, while exhibiting a soft hand, tend to develop higher levels of static charge than the uncoated fabrics.
Various quaternary ammonium compounds known in the art possess anti-static properties. These compounds, while suitable in combination with clay materials to provide the anti-static properties which are not provided by the clays can be inhibited in their provision of anti-static effects by the presence of anionic substances conventionally employed in the cleansing of fabrics in laundering operations.
It is an object of the present invention to provide fabric softening and anti-static compositions capable of providing their effects in the presence of conventional detergent compositions to thereby concurrently launder, soften and impart anti-static benefits to fabrics.
It is another object of the present invention to provide compositions containing certain clay fabric softening agents and quaternary ammonium anti-static agents adapted to use in the washing cycle of a laundering operation.
These and the objects are obtained herein, as will be seen from the following disclosure.